Good News on a Rainy Day – Portsmouth Evangelism

The outreach began under clear blue skies, but not long after arriving in Portsmouth city centre, everything changed. The sky turned grey and the rain began to fall. Yet people still engaged with the good news. Some people were very closed to the message of Christ, but others were very open.

Many tracts were handed out today, and most people were receptive to the Christmas-themed tracts. This season provides us with a wonderful opportunity to speak about Jesus; we just need to make sure we use that open door!

I preached first on the topic, “What’s in a Name?” In this message, I took the names Immanuel and Jesus and showed the identity and work of Christ. As I preached, a man began to object. He claimed to be a Christian, but he was blaspheming and proclaiming a different gospel. It became clear that he had been heavily influenced by the cult of the Jehovah’s Witnesses. The man claimed that sinning is part of being human, but that it is acceptable because Jesus said sorry to Jehovah on our behalf. I challenged this view and shared the biblical gospel with him.

The man strongly objected to the deity of Christ and to the truth that Jesus died on the cross. I answered his objections and continually brought the discussion back to the question, “How will your sins be forgiven?” He did not know how to answer, so I repeatedly assured him of my love and care for him, then took him back to the death and resurrection of Jesus. At the end of the message, the man gave me a hug, saying he appreciated me speaking with him.

Another man, who had been listening, loudly declared that he agreed with me. He then walked over to the literature table to receive a New Testament and returned to give me a big hug. It seemed that people were in a hugging mood!

After the open-air preaching, team members were busy speaking with different people about Jesus. Jim was engaged in conversation with a couple of Muslims. Jyothi was speaking with a senior leader from the Mormon religion. Sarah was busy handing out tracts and pointing people to Christ. Meanwhile, Nigel found himself in conversation with two Mormon elders at the literature table.

It is always encouraging to see so many people hearing the good news of Jesus. After Nigel had been speaking with the Mormons for a while, he invited me to join the conversation. Normally, LDS missionaries tend to withdraw when their views are challenged, but these two young men were different. Both had been serving as ‘elders’ for over a year (one for nearly two years), and they were very open. They were not in a rush to leave; they listened and engaged with what we said.

We had a brief apologetics discussion about the trustworthiness of Scripture, then we got to the heart of the matter—the gospel. I asked the Mormons to explain their understanding of the gospel, and they responded not with good news, but with the bad news of a works-based religion. Nigel and I were then able to explain the biblical gospel to them.

Both men were very polite and friendly. As our conversation came to an end, I issued them a challenge: to read Romans and Galatians in the Bible and, as they did so, to keep asking the question, “How does the Bible say I can be right with God?” They said they would read the Bible, then asked whether I had read the Book of Mormon. I assured them that I had. We all shook hands and parted as friends.

While we were speaking with the Mormons, Jim was busy preaching. I did not hear what he said, but I am sure it was very Christ-honouring.

By this point, the outreach had finished. The Lord was truly kind to the city of Portsmouth. Please pray that many will respond to the good news.

SDG!

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Josh Williamson is a full-time evangelist with The Open-Air Mission. Since 1853, OAM has been sharing the good news on the streets of the United Kingdom. To stay updated about the work of the Mission, please sign up for the free quarterly magazine and monthly prayer notes.

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